AWOL statement on sexual harassment in activist spaces

*TRIGGER WARNING We, as survivors, opponents of sexual violence, feminists and/or feminist allies have taken the decision to publicly oppose and name a man within the activist and anarchist community who we know to have repeatedly sexually harassed several young women*. This harassment is known to have taken place in person, via social media and/or text message. *All references to women refer to any SI women.The individual concerned, Paul Cunliffe, of Merseyside, has sexually harassed young women within both the local and UK-wide anarchist and activist movement. This has caused varied impacts upon their lives, and the lives of other women who are aware of his actions. One woman for example, quit activism due to Cunliffe’s aggression towards her when she rejected his unwanted sexual advances. Presently we are aware of six different women affected, of the four we have spoken to, two declined to make a public statement- a decision we completely support – with one too fearful for her safety to do so. However another two women have offered brief descriptions of what happened to them:

“My communications with Paul Cunliffe occurred for several months when I was 17 years old. He first contacted me via the internet, where he began talking to me most days, and most of the time I replied amiably, out of a wish not to offend. After a while speaking online, some of his conversations became inappropriate. I told him at this time that I was not interested in pursuing a romantic or sexual relationship with him, but he persisted in making sexual jokes, which, as he was ten years older than me, made me feel uncomfortable. He became seemingly obsessed with me, made several comments about us having sex, sent text messages referencing sexual acts, and told me that he had masturbated over me. This was all done when he was in full knowledge that I was not interested in him. I didn’t want to upset him if I would have to see him again, as I knew he was capable of violence, and so I didn’t feel able to tell him outright to stop. He apologised several times for his behaviour, but it continued. Towards the end of our contact he was talking to me every day on social media, and sometimes became annoyed or upset if I ignored him. He was also verbally abusive towards a friend of mine. Our contact ended when he sent me a final message, in which he swore at me and insulted me. I would urge all women to be very careful about getting involved with him – I wish that I never had. Having had time to reflect on the events, if anything similar happened again, I believe I would feel forced to contact the police in concern for my welfare.”

A second woman, Romana, who has waived the anonymity we offered her, has told us the following:

It was December 2011 when I started talking to Paul via DM on Twitter. We’d been interacting since November or October, as I was going through a stressful time with both religion and anarchy which are opposed each other. He was polite, joked around and gave me advice. He is an anarchist who tried to explain things which I found helpful and I could also talk to him about problems at home such as violence which built a trust bond.I first put a picture of myself on Twitter in December, after which he contacted me and said it was attractive. I said thank you, as at the time I thought he was saying it in a friendly way because he hadn’t made any advances at this point. He asked for my number and I gave it as I trusted him. He then texted me sexual comments. I said I was 16 and he said he had thought I was older and made another sexual comment. At the time I was going through confused feelings and he being someone I looked up to and trusted, I responded initially.He then started to take sexual comments a bit further at which point I felt uncomfortable but was worried that if I did not respond at least politely that he’d take offence and accuse me publicly of things, as he’d said things about another girl he was involved with that made her out to be a bad person (I later found out that she’d rejected him). I very often would tell him I felt uncomfortable and wanted him not to say things. Quite a few times he texted me along the lines of ‘I’m horny, wondering what you’d do to turn me on’ or ‘I’m so hard right now’ and go on to tell me how he would have intercourse with me.I started to feel very uncomfortable a few days after and told him I’m wasn’t in a good mental state and I’d like him to stop. He continued. I’d say ‘please stop, seriously…I really want you to stop’ and he’d continue to text sexual things or just ignore me and then on the next day/next few days I would receive a text along the same explicit sexual lines.At one point I lost my temper and told him to leave me alone and he got very angry, after which I became fearful that he’d spread rumours about me making me out to be a bad person as he had done with two women by this point, so I apologised. We stopped talking for a month or two after but then he suddenly started speaking to me again, apologised for his behaviour and told me about some stuff he was going through for which I gave him some advice.Towards the end of that correspondence he began to make sexual comments and I ignored him initially but began to feel uncomfortable and in the same position again, I thought he would say that I’d come on to him. As he was friends with James and I have a good friendship with James and I didn’t want him to turn James or any friends in Liverpool against me, I responded, feeling very upset and angry and helpless until he started to mention threesomes. He suggested having a threesome with Anna (Anna is 16) and a 17 year old friend of mine called Holly. He also suggested a threesome with a girl he’d been involved with.I asked him to stop and said I was incredibly uncomfortable with him degrading other women like this. I eventually talked to Anna about the situation as she mentioned he perved on young women. On the same day Holly told me that he’d made sexual advances and suggested threesomes to her in a dm. She felt very uncomfortable and avoided the comments but he gave up eventually after asking outright if she was sexually interested in him. At this point I became very angry as not only had I found he’d been harassing other young women in Liverpool and talking about women as if they were objects for him to masturbate over, but he’d also been trying to put my friend in the same situation.The next day I decided to do some research and told a girl he had been spreading nasty rumours about what he had said, and she was very upset and told me she was scared of him as he’d said some aggressively sexual things and she thought he sounded violent at times. I confronted him that day and told him enough was enough and I won’t allow him to put any more women in positions where they feel helpless or uncomfortable – shortly after this he deactivated Twitter and Facebook.

Due to abuse received from misogynists on social media websites regarding this statement, Romana has also written a piece for her own blog which can be found here The aims and purpose of this statement are three-fold:

To ensure that others, particularly women, are aware of his behaviour and thus can make an informed decision about whether they feel comfortable having any kind of relationship with him;

To ensure the safety of women, within Merseyside in particular, and to allow those who own or take care of places with a ‘safe spaces’ policy to consider whether they should continue to grant him access;

To encourage political organisations to consider their policy on the safety of their female members and how they can avoid compromising this.

We believe that misogyny, sexual aggression and violence are NEVER acceptable and that such consistent harassment shows blatant misogyny and disregard for the oppression that women face under patriarchy. A person cannot class themselves as an “Anarcho-Communist” and then show such misogynist aggression, which is diametrically opposed to the values Anarcho-Communism espouses. We ask that women, men and groups share and sign this letter to create a network of support and solidarity for those involved in exposing Cunliffe’s behaviour and to minimise any potential backlash that may be caused by doing so. Perpetrators of harassment, aggression and violence towards women should not be allowed to continue to do so without repercussions and we urge all feminists, feminist allies and organisations who support women’s rights to endorse this statement.
In solidarity,Angry Women of Liverpool

trouble is, unless we know what the man looks like what can we do? people change their names all the time, and anyway don’t usually give their surnames. we would need a photograph really, for this to be of any real use.

Please add my name. Well done to everyone speaking out. It’s a horrible situation to be put in but I firmly believe you’ve done the right thing. As a female in Liverpool who is involved in activism and has had contact with this man, I’m really glad I know and am hugely grateful to everyone for looking out for each other.

Would you like this statement (or anything else) put in the next issue of Freedom? Our deadline is Saturday which i know doesn’t leave you much time to decide but we would very much like to publically back you. Scott Wakeham & Andy Meinke (editors) Please ring Andy if you have any questions (079521 57742)
In Solidarity

This is a really bad case of cyber bullying. Is everyone just taking a the word of a small click of women? Has anyone actually given Paul a say? He’s one of the best guys I know and doesn’t deserve this witchhunt, these people are obviously out of touch with reality if they think Paul is a danger to anyone….well I suppose it gives them something to be ‘angry’ about!

Actually, Paul *was* given a say. One of our male allies had a wee friendly chat with him so as to get his side of the story. You know what he said? He admitted that he had harassed women and then went on to say “I’m not a misogynist, I just can’t help myself.” Sorry about that.

Hi again ‘Marie’, I’m very flattered that you are attempting to troll us across several blogs. To quote your own words back at you, you obviously have a lot of time on your hands. Sorry to disappoint you but what is bullying is consistent sexual harassment of women in more than two cities and subsequent admittance of same. And, yes, he has been given the opportunity as noted in more detail by Anna above.

In fact- Hi Paul, is that you? Nice to hear from you. I look forward to further exchanges on the next blog you leave a comment on.

Thank you for taking this initiative. The number of women getting involved in anarchism has had a positive impact on the way we organize and the perspectives we have. It has been a key part of the growth of anarchism in the last years. Paul’s behavior damages the movement as well as the women he victimized.
I hope Paul can look at himself and the way he has behaved and find it within him to move on and learn. If he had not been confronted he would not have had this opportunity. He owes you a debt of gratitude- even if he is hurt and angry now.
Paul is not a monster but a foolish man. It is good that his power to hurt women has been diminished by this action and it is a warning to others of us who are capable of behaving in a similar way.

It does not feel good to hang out people in public…but I have done the same in my home-contry…with right-wing extremists…ad I think we do right when it comes to those right-wing scum bags…the rapists…and the child-abusers. I called the police in my hometown once…and said: “Hey…you must come over quick…my girl-friend is being raped…!” The policeman asked who she was. And I told him. Then I heard him laughing…saying: “She is just a “puta”…!” And then I heard all the other polices laugh in the background. So. YES. In one way or the other…we will have to solve these problems ourselves…and I am here…waiting…for the right people…PEOPLE WHO SHARES WITH ME THE IDE THAT RAPE IS A WORSE CRIME THAN KILLING SOMEONE…(its also more practicle that way..)…am afraid we have to create our own action…the police have been using sexual orintated torture on me…for SUSPISCIES of smoking cannabis…So i wouldnt trust that people too much…the police are more or less as criminal as the criminales they relate too…or do you have a better explanation on why they hang around so much together…????

i really wish people would stop promoting this myth that rape is equal to or worse than murder. it is not. rape is awful enough without the suggestion that we survivors would be better off dead. i have been raped twice and sexually assaulted numerous times. i have discussed this with lots of others survivors and all agree that we are glad we are alive and that it is entirely possible to recover and live a good life after rape. not easy; but certainly possible. we can say rape is terrible, rape is wrong, rape hurts us, etc without needing to resort to such unhelpful hyperbole.

You misunderstood me COMPLETELY…I never said that you would be better off dead…than being raped; where do you get that ide from…?? I said – or at least tryed to – that rape is a WORSE CRIME than killing someone. I am only responsible for what I say…NOT for what you understand…so…please do NOT put words in my moouth that does NOT belong there…!! And by the way: You should put yourself together…you even dont seem to have got the point that there is a different between a murder…and killing someone…

I will be happy to add your name…Venus Envy, blogger…if I just can manage to enter all these god dam sides with all those mixing up with passwords and stuff…I think this is an extremly important issue…our MOVEMENT…should make us able to stand streight up and looking forward…right into peoples eyes…and decalair: “Such thing as sexual abusement does noet exist in our group of brothers and sisters…as it would represent a disgrace to all that we stand for…all that we fight for…all the hope we are carring with us – if mayby not for ourselves – so at least to create a better world for our grandchildren…coz this world is so fucked up…that if I will see any major progress…(like a WORLD-REVOLUTION…!)…in my time on this planet…I would probably die the first day of the revolution…of happiness…my heart would probably not be able to take it…coz how can somebody who grew up in such a fucked up world, having such a fucked-up life…survive an attacck of pure happiness and joy…??

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[…] sexual harrassment by a man within the activist and anarchist community, which can be found here, (many thanks to Leila and Anna and everyone else who helped with this, also thanks to James who […]